Amsterdam commemorates 30th anniversary of El Al plane crash in Bijlmer
Thirty years ago today, a cargo play of the Israeli airline El Al crashed in the BIjlmer in Amsterdam, killing 43 people. Like every year, the victims loved ones and others involved will gather to commemorate.
The plane crashed into the Groeneveen and Kruitberg apartment buildings on 4 October 1992. The crash killed 43 people, including all four crew members of the aircraft, and many others got hurt.
The commemoration will start at 5:00 p.m. with a gathering in the atrium of the CEDC building on Bijlmerdreef in Amsterdam Zuidoost. Amsterdam mayor Femke Halsema and State Secretary Vivianne Heijnen of Infrastructure and Water Management will be among the speakers.
Afterward, participants will march to The Growing Monument at the “tree that saw everything” - a tree on the crash site that survived the impact and subsequent fire. There, the program will continue with the reading of the victims’ names, a poem, and a minute of silence at 6:35 p.m. - the time when the plane crashed into the apartment buildings.
No planes will fly over the Bijlmer during the commemoration. The neighborhood is usually a busy flight path for Schiphol.
